Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Steward of Christendom | 1995 | Sebastian Barry | Buy |
| 2 | Annie Dunne | 2002 | Sebastian Barry | Buy |
| 3 | A Long Long Way | 2005 | Sebastian Barry | Buy |
| 4 | On Canaan’s Side | 2011 | Sebastian Barry | Buy |
The Dunne Family novels and plays follow the descendants of Thomas Dunne, a former chief superintendent of the Dublin Metropolitan Police, as they scatter across the twentieth century. Each book stands alone but gains depth when read alongside the others, as Barry traces how the upheavals of Irish independence ripple through one family’s life.
“A Long Long Way” follows Willie Dunne in the trenches of World War I, while “Annie Dunne” captures rural Irish life in the 1950s. “On Canaan’s Side” takes the family to America. Together, they form a portrait of displacement and endurance that spans continents and decades.